7 secrets that forests have been keeping from you |
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May 27, 2019 - FAO UN
Forests do more for us than we realize. They clean our water and filter our air, and they provide food, medicine and fuel for more than a billion people worldwide.
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Human society under urgent threat from loss of Earth's natural life
Scientists reveal 1 million species at risk of extinction in damning UN report
Human society is in jeopardy from the accelerating decline of the Earth’s natural life-support systems, the world’s leading scientists have warned, as they announced the results of the most thorough planetary health check ever undertaken.
From coral reefs flickering out beneath the oceans to rainforests desiccatinginto savannahs, nature is being destroyed at a rate tens to hundreds of times higher than the average over the past 10m years, according to the UN globalassessment report. The biomass of wild mammals has fallen by 82%, natural ecosystems have lost about half their area and a million species are at risk of extinction – all largely as a result of human actions, said the study, compiled over three years by more than 450 scientists and diplomats. Read the full article which has many facts and photos. Protect Our Species on Endangered Species Day!
If we care about plastic waste, why won’t we stop drinking bottled water?
Where Your Recycled Plastic Ends Up - Trashing the PlanetApril 27, 2019 - The Story of Stuff Project
Call on Canada to become part of the solution
Canada warming at twice the global rate!April 4, 2019 - CBC National
In October 2018, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change issued a report stressing the urgency for nations to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to a level achieving a limit of 1.5 degrees C.
Nations are far behind in achieving this level and emissions are due to increase again this year. Everyone feels the effects of the warming temperatures with the Arctic and Antarctic noticing significant changes. As a nation, Canada is warming the fastest according to recent news. (Felician Sister of N. America)
SumOfUs pushes Ottawa to speed up plan to ban bee-killing pesticides
Earth Day 2019: Protect Our SpeciesJanuary 30, 2019 - Earth Day Network
Earth Day (April 22) 2019 marks the 49th anniversary of the first Earth Day. We are excited to announce that our theme this year is Protect Our Species!
Nature's gifts to our planet are the millions of species that we know and love. Many more species remain to be discovered. Unfortunately, the world is facing the greatest rate of extinction since the extinction of the dinosaurs more than 60 million years ago. The impacts are far-reaching. Here are some quick facts on the current wave of extinction and additional background information about this problem. All living things have value in and of themselves and each one plays a unique role in the complex web of life. Earth Day Network has developed Toolkits that contain ideas for actions and resources to help you and your communities participate in Earth Day 2019's Protect Our Species campaign. LEARN MORE
Plastic Production Pollutes Small Town
December 2, 2018 - The Story of Stuff
A mini-documentary exploring the connection between plastic and fossil fuels?
TELL CANADA YOU WANT TO END PLASTIC WASTE
November 19, 2018 - environmental defence
Next week, Canada’s federal, provincial and territorial environment ministers are meeting in Ottawa to finalize their national plan to fight plastic pollution. It’s vital that the plan is both ambitious and enforceable if we’re going to improve our terrible 11 per cent recycling rate for plastic waste. Sign the petition now to make sure they know you want a plastic waste free environment by 2025. Learn more
CBC TV, The Weekly, looks at the Glyphosate (Round-up) concern
60% of world's wildlife has been wiped out since 1970!!October 30, 2018 - WWF & CBC
Well over half the world's population of vertebrates, from fish to birds to mammals, have been wiped out in the past four decades, says a new report from the World Wildlife Fund.
Between 1970 and 2014, there was 60 per cent decline, on average, among 16,700 wildlife populations around the world according to the 2018 edition of the Living Planet Report released Monday. "We've had a loss of nearly two-thirds, on average, of our wild species," said James Snider, vice-president of science, research and innovation for WWF-Canada. WWF News Release (Digital Journal) "The magnitude of that should be eye opening… We really are reaching a point where we're likely to see species go extinct. That's true in Canada and abroad."
What took 100's of millions of years to create man is destroying in a couple of 100 years. Government inaction is no longer an option.
Let us all speak up! Learn what you can do and act! - FVC Bishops' Urge Strong Action on Climate ChangeOctober 29, 2018 - CRUX
On Friday, at the closing of the Synod on the Youth, the presidents of Bishops Conferences in Latin America, Asia, Africa, Oceania and Europe signed a joint statement calling for bold action from governments to keep global warming below 1.5C. This statement was directed towards world leaders before the Conference of Parties in Poland this December. Based on the principles of Laudato Si’, this statement highlights that climate change is an issue of intergenerational justice, human dignity and human rights. READ THE CRUX ARTICLE --- Read the Joint Statement
Was this statement signed by Canadian and American Bishops, and if not, why not? - FVC UN report on global warming carries life-or-death warning
October 8, 2018 - CBC News
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change issues gloomy report at meeting in Incheon, South Korea
Preventing an extra single degree of heat could make a life-or-death difference in the next few decades for multitudes of people and ecosystems on this fast-warming planet, an international panel of scientists reported Sunday. But they provide little hope the world will rise to the challenge. In the 728-page document, the UN organization detailed how Earth's weather, health and ecosystems would be in better shape if the world's leaders could somehow limit future human-caused warming to just a half degree Celsius from now, instead of the globally agreed-upon goal of one degree. Among other things:
READ MORE Plastic Pollution: How Humans are Turning the World into PlasticSeptember 25, 2018 - Kurzgesagt - In a Nutshell
This video is a collaboration with UN Environment and their Clean Seas campaign Modern life would be impossible without plastic – but we have long since lost control over our invention. Why has plastic turned into a problem and what do we know about its dangers?
We could shift to sustainability and save $26 trillion.September 9, 2018 - VOX - David Roberts (Twitter)
Ireland becomes world's first country to divest from fossil fuels
.....and Costa Rica to ban fossil fuels and become world's first decarbonised society
The kind of right thinking that our Canadian government needs to do more of! - FVC
Costa Rica: A Model for SustainabilityAugust 21, 2018 - Earth Share, By Erica Flock
The Rainforest Alliance works in Costa Rica and many other countries to help farmers adopt green practices like this and today we’re visiting one such farm: Doka Estate Coffee.
Unlike most of the farms around it, Doka is preserving its trees, phasing out the use of most pesticides, and incorporating many other sustainable practices. Quality coffee like this earns a better price in the market, and workers are spared the damaging health effects of pesticides. During the tour where we learn about the sorting and drying of coffee beans, we hear a variety of birds calling from nearby trees. Managed right, a coffee farm makes great habitat for wildlife. READ MORE Grieving Orca carries dead baby
The calf died Tuesday [24 July 2018] morning, half an hour after it was born near Victoria, BC in the Haro Strait between Sidney Island, BC and Henry Island, WA, to a 20-year-old whale called J35. It was the first calf known to have been born to the local population, known as the Southern Resident killer whales, since 2015. There are just 75 of these endangered whales in three pods. J-35’s pod consists of 23 whales.
(And).....There are more potential threats on the horizon. A recent agreement to expand the Trans Mountain Pipeline, which carries oil from Alberta to Burnaby, BC, would multiply tanker traffic through the orcas’ habitat and expose them to more noise and potential spills and ship strikes. READ THE FULL PAGE ..... What can we do? Learn more from this March 2018 video (1 min 35 secs) from the Raincoast Conservation Foundation: A Killer Whale Emergency Afroz Shah Admirable Beach Cleanup MUST WATCH!
This video is powerful.
June 10, 2018 - Video 1:58 min.
91% of plastic isn't recycled. See how you can take your beach cleanups to the next level! - TAKE ACTION! Also see Waterdocs to see what you can do to protect water on World Oceans Day.
Mobility pricing relieves congestion, helps people breathe easierJune 4, 2018 - Suzuki Foundation
By 2002, drivers in London, England, were spending as much as half their commuting time stalled in traffic, contributing to much of the city centre’s dangerous particulate pollution. To deal with a growing population, increasing gridlock and air quality concerns, the city implemented a congestion charge, using a photo-based licence-recognition system.
Between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. on weekdays, drivers entering a 21-square-kilometre zone in Central London are charged a fee, which has risen from about C$8.50 in 2003 to $20 now. The city offers discounts or exemptions for zone residents, people with disabilities, emergency vehicles, motorcycles and taxis. Congestion pricing is a solution that works. But politically, it’s a difficult sell.... .....Cities worldwide have implemented or are considering congestion pricing, including Singapore, New York and my hometown of Vancouver. Metro Vancouver’s Mobility Pricing Independent Commission recently released a report that concluded, “Region-wide road usage charging is the most effective tool to provide a systematic, meaningful and lasting reduction in traffic congestion.”...... READ MORE.... Editor's Comment: Tell your representives to act to reduce traffic congestion. The Great Pacific Garbage PatchMay 7, 2018 - National Ocean Service
This Sunday April 22, we celebrate Earth Day and its theme this year is "End Plastic Pollution"April 19, 2018 - Greenpeace
This is the perfect opportunity to talk with your family and friends about how you can make a difference in your community or city. Greenpeace are launching a new project and have created an action toolkit to help you work with your community, local businesses and elected officials to stop the flow of plastic waste into our waterways and oceans by turning off the tap at the source - the overproduction of single-use items. Let's break free from plastic! Check out the toolkit and see how you might best take action.
Microplastics found in some Canadian bottled waterApril 9, 2018 - CBC Market Place
Going green shouldn't be this hardMarch 16, 2018
Four years of garbage in one jar seems a bit questionable, but the overall message is worth the time to watch this video. FVC
Our names are Mya and Eve and we are 11-year old students in Grade 6 attending school in Calgary. A science project of ours on single-use disposable cups revealed shocking facts and we think it’s time to act.
We also did some research and found that 430 billion single-use disposable cups are thrown in the trash each year around the world, about 140,000 each second. We also found that every year, Starbucks distributes more than 4 billion single-use cups to customers, which means that 1 million trees are cut down to provide the paper. Most people think that these cups are recyclable but that’s not always true. In Canada alone, over 1.5 billion disposable coffee cups are thrown away each year. Some end up in landfill and some are incinerated adding to air pollution and climate change. Starbucks could recommit to 100% recyclable cups. In 2008, it had the goal to serve a recyclable cup by 2015. That did not happen! Today, billions of cups still go straight to the garbage. The plastic lining inside the cups makes it almost impossible to recycle with regular paper. We must ask them to develop a cup that can be recycled all over the world with the existing technology in recycling facilities. I think they can afford it with a total net income of $ 2,884,700 in 2017 according to Nasdaq! What can we do? See, learn, pray, act! We can sign the girls’ petition here: Sign the Petition
Consumer society no longer serves our needsJanuary 14, 2018 - David Suzuki
.......Now, we are no longer defined by our societal roles (parents, churchgoers, teachers, doctors, plumbers, etc.) or political status (voters) but as “customers,” “shoppers” or “consumers.” The media remind us daily of how well we’re supporting continued economic growth, using the Dow Jones average, S&P Index, price of gold and dollar’s value.
But where is the indication of our real status — Earthlings — animals whose very survival and well-being depend on the state of our home, planet Earth? Do we think we can survive without the other animals and plants that share the biosphere? And does our health not reflect the condition of air, water and soil that sustain all life? It’s as if they matter only in terms of how much it will cost to maintain or protect them. Nature, increasingly under pressure from the need for constant economic growth, is often used to spread the consumption message. Nature has long been exploited in commercials — the lean movement of lions or tigers in car ads, the cuteness of parrots or mice, the strength of crocodiles, etc. But now animals are portrayed to actively recruit consumers. I’m especially nauseated by the shot of a penguin offering a stone to a potential mate being denigrated by another penguin offering a fancy diamond necklace. How can we have serious discussions about the ecological costs and limits to growth or the need to degrow economies when consumption is seen as the very reason the economy and society exist? READ THE FULL ARTICLE..... January 9, 2018 - TEDx - Rachel Lincoln Sarnoff
Can One Straw Change The World?Single-use plastics like cups, bags, bottles and straws contribute to the eight million tons of non-biodegradable plastic that we send to the ocean each year, where it works its way up the food chain and onto our plates. Recent studies have found microplastics in fish, sea salt, and drinking water, and some chemicals in these plastics have been linked to obesity, infertility and even cancer. Is better recycling or using compostable plastics the solution? Not exactly. Learn the simple steps you can take to break your single-use plastic habit and change the world.
January 9, 2018 - the Guardian
A million bottles a minute: world's plastic binge 'as dangerous as climate change'A million plastic bottles are bought around the world every minute and the number will jump another 20% by 2021, creating an environmental crisis some campaigners predict will be as serious as climate change.
There has been growing concern about the impact of plastics pollution in oceans around the world. Last month scientists found nearly 18 tonnes of plastic on one of the world’s most remote islands, an uninhabited coral atoll in the South Pacific.
Another study of remote Arctic beaches found they were also heavily polluted with plastic, despite small local populations. And earlier this week scientists warned that plastic bottles and other packaging are overrunning some of the UK’s most beautiful beaches and remote coastline, endangering wildlife from basking sharks to puffins. READ MORE November 22, 2017
For decades, Coca-Cola has used the holidays as a marketing opportunity to sell itself as a happy joyful brand — but this global drinks giant’s plastic pollution is not filling us with festive cheer.
Watch and share our alternative Coke holiday commercial: share via Facebook, Twitter, or forward this email to a friend. Coca-Cola produces an estimated 110 billion plastic bottles a year, and many of these end up in landfill, on beaches, and in the ocean. We’re calling on Coke to take action to reduce the amount of plastic it produces. As the world’s biggest soft drinks company, it can change the way the whole industry operates. The more people who watch and share this video, the more pressure Coke will be under to take responsibility for its role in the plastic pollution crisis. Watch and share the video to expose the truth about Coke’s plastic problem: Share via Facebook, Twitter, or forward this email to a friend. So far over 350,000 people have signed the global petition to Coke and thousands have emailed Coke’s global CEO. Now, during one of the most important moments in Coke’s calendar, we need your help to turn up the pressure. The holiday season should be a time for kindness and joy — but while companies like Coke continue to pump out billions of throwaway plastic bottles, our oceans and the marine life will continue to suffer. November 21, 2017 - David Suzuki Foundation
Time for Canada to invest in protecting nature
Reduce and reuse plastic use - straws are a big start
Government inaction, industry tactics increase caribou risksNovember 2, 2017 - David Suzuki Foundation
October 5 came and went, and Canada’s boreal woodland caribou are still in trouble. That was the deadline the federal government gave provinces and territories five years ago to come up with caribou range plans for the iconic animals. Not one met the deadline.
Why should we care about caribou? Beyond the fact that we should care about all animals that play important roles in the ecological makeup of this “super natural” country, caribou are indicators of forest health. When caribou are healthy, it’s a sign the forests they live in are healthy. Forests provide numerous ecological services, such as preventing floods, storing carbon and regulating climate, as well as habitat for animals and plants and livelihoods and resources for people. READ MORE... October 9, 2017
Divestment from fossil fuels &
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Watch this video (left) from Ecuador with a Sarayaku woman: Nina Gualinga (time 3.58) about keeping oil in the ground. It also leads you a petition with video (time 2.12) at Amazonwatch. |
September 28, 2017 - Greenpeace Canada
Nestlé, Unilever, P&G among worst offenders for plastic pollution in Philippines in beach audit
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Montreal, September 21, 2017 - Following a week-long beach clean up on Freedom Island, a critical wetland habitat and Ramsar site [1] spanning 30 hectares in Manila Bay - one of the worst areas for plastic pollution in the Philippines, Greenpeace has exposed the companies most responsible for plastic pollution after an audit of plastic waste was conducted.....
Did you know that, "Canada is responsible for exporting approximately one third of diverted waste plastic to other countries [7], including China, the United States and the Philippines" READ MORE... |
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Op-ed: If you love the ocean, change the throwaway economy
The Environmental Law Centre Society just released a study called, Seven Reforms to Address Marine Plastic Pollution. A short overview has some startling statements:
"The world’s oceans are choking on plastic. This year up to 20 million tons of plastic bags, food wrappers, bottles, straws, Styrofoam, plastic fishing gear and other plastic products will cascade into the sea.
A startling new study in the Strait of Georgia has found over 3,000 plastic micro-particles per cubic metre of water. Clearly the throwaway plastic economy must be fundamentally changed.....
...... we need to reinvent the world’s plastic economy. British Columbians (and other provinces) can demand that governments:
Download the full study: Seven Reforms to Address Marine Plastic Pollution.
Editor's comment
These documents have much information for us and our communities to absorb. We need to speak up and express our concern with the staggering and growing plastic pollution problem. We need to call on industry, governments and our cities to stop plastic pollution. The throw away plastic economy needs to change. Get informed, talk about it in your fraternities and groups; make the pledge to first change your ways and then commit to call on others to do the same. Call on industry to change. Call on our governments to make the critical changes in law. The report provides many examples of cities, municipalities, and countries around the world who have implemented effective regulations that led to reduced plastic pollution. Make
"The world’s oceans are choking on plastic. This year up to 20 million tons of plastic bags, food wrappers, bottles, straws, Styrofoam, plastic fishing gear and other plastic products will cascade into the sea.
A startling new study in the Strait of Georgia has found over 3,000 plastic micro-particles per cubic metre of water. Clearly the throwaway plastic economy must be fundamentally changed.....
...... we need to reinvent the world’s plastic economy. British Columbians (and other provinces) can demand that governments:
- Ban the distribution of single-use plastic bags at supermarket checkouts — or tax it. California recently issued a ban — Ireland and England have reduced bag usage with taxes.
- Ban the sale of individual-sized bottled water, like Concord, Mass.
- Ban plastic straws, like Manhattan Beach, Calif. Alternatives exist, for those that need straws.
- Ban non-biodegradable disposable plastic cups and tableware (like France) — and Styrofoam food ware (like San Francisco).
Download the full study: Seven Reforms to Address Marine Plastic Pollution.
Editor's comment
These documents have much information for us and our communities to absorb. We need to speak up and express our concern with the staggering and growing plastic pollution problem. We need to call on industry, governments and our cities to stop plastic pollution. The throw away plastic economy needs to change. Get informed, talk about it in your fraternities and groups; make the pledge to first change your ways and then commit to call on others to do the same. Call on industry to change. Call on our governments to make the critical changes in law. The report provides many examples of cities, municipalities, and countries around the world who have implemented effective regulations that led to reduced plastic pollution. Make
August 21, 2017
Stop the Great Lakes Nuclear Dumps
Would you bury poison beside your well?
Ontario Power Generation plans to bury radioactive nuclear waste right beside Lake Huron
Ontario Power Generation plans to bury radioactive nuclear waste right beside Lake Huron
July 24, 2017
How Wolves Change Rivers
The links between creatures of this earth are a wonder and when man tampers with creation things often are not for the better. Watch this short video - editor
July 3, 2017 - Sofia Winford, Aleteia
Breaking this one little habit would have a huge effect on the environment
When Milo Cress started knocking on the doors of restaurants in Vermont with his appeal that they stop serving straws, he was only 9 years old. Now, at 15, Milo’s campaign is still going strong. He travels all over the world and has spoken at many high schools to deliver his important message.
But why straws? Straws are one of the most common types of plastic littering beaches, with estimates showing that the number of straws Americans use every day could wrap around the Earth two and half times. READ MORE.....join the fight.
But why straws? Straws are one of the most common types of plastic littering beaches, with estimates showing that the number of straws Americans use every day could wrap around the Earth two and half times. READ MORE.....join the fight.
JPIC News – The BC Election and pipelines
We know that technology based on the use of highly polluting fossil fuels – especially coal, but also oil and, to a lesser degree, gas – needs to be progressively replaced without delay. As Secular Franciscans we have to be aware of this. A reminder that one meaning of spirituality is how we live our lives informed by our faith. - Andrew Conradi, ofs
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The Oceans Are Drowning In Plastic — And No One’s Paying Attention
“We’re being overwhelmed by our waste.”
Huffington Post - May 12, 2017
.......“We’re being overwhelmed by our waste,” said Jenna Jambeck, an environmental engineer who led the 2015 study that determined this staggering number. According to Jambeck’s research, this figure is on track to double by 2025 unless something is done, swiftly and at a global scale, to stem the tide of garbage.....
........Recent studies have found that microplastics can also get washed out of synthetic clothing, like those made of polyester or acrylic. A 2016 paper concluded that a single cycle of a washing machine could release more than 700,000 microplastic fibers into the environment....
.....Developing nations don’t bear all the blame: The United States (and Canada?) has an ocean pollution problem, too. The main issue in this country is littering, according to Jambeck. “Even though we do have robust and effective waste management systems, we have litter,” she said. “And because our per-person waste generation rate is so high in the U.S., even that small amount of litter contributes to this problem.” The United States is one of the world’s top five waste-generating developed countries, according to the World Economic Forum.....
........Recent studies have found that microplastics can also get washed out of synthetic clothing, like those made of polyester or acrylic. A 2016 paper concluded that a single cycle of a washing machine could release more than 700,000 microplastic fibers into the environment....
.....Developing nations don’t bear all the blame: The United States (and Canada?) has an ocean pollution problem, too. The main issue in this country is littering, according to Jambeck. “Even though we do have robust and effective waste management systems, we have litter,” she said. “And because our per-person waste generation rate is so high in the U.S., even that small amount of litter contributes to this problem.” The United States is one of the world’s top five waste-generating developed countries, according to the World Economic Forum.....
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